LOCATION: Heart Caves

On silent, silver-lined wings he had been flying when the storm hit - there had been warning signs, but he had thought to return to the Throat before it caught up with him. His mind was already focused there in the herd land, where he could shelter there in the oasis with the others, watch as the hard-packed surface of the Throat’s borders swam with the excess water before it evaporated as soon as the rain stopped. This deep into Tallsun, the rains could be furious in their intensity but they never usually lasted very long or affected the environment too much - the water was likely to just run off into the ocean instead of sticking around to provide any moisture to the earth.

Furious and intense were certainly apt words to describe the feeling of the storm as Mesec got caught in it as he daydreamed - the winds bringing the rain much faster than he had anticipated. He wasn’t going to make it to the Throat, not right now. The risk that he could get swept up and tossed somewhere was too great. Weren’t the winds part of his mother’s domain as well? This storm felt like her - felt as unforgiving and merciless.

No, he wasn’t going to spiral down that path - not now. The solution for the storm was a simple one, not troublesome and confusing like his family. Shelter, he needed shelter. Through the raindrops he was able to spy the warm glow that signalled Helovia’s ever-burning heart - nothing could extinguish those flames, not even this rain. The caves were close then! The demigod hadn’t been back there since… well, it had been a while. They held no fear for him now, they were just caves - once they sheltered nearly the entire population of this land and today they would shelter him.

A particularly strong gust of wind caught his outstretched wings as he angled toward the ground - giving him fight and when he did manage to hit the ground, it was with more force than he intended. The propulsion sent him into a stumbling trot right through the entrance of the caves before he managed to regain his composure and neatly stop. The black-and-silver shadow had moved several feet into the mouth of the cave before realizing he had breezed right by someone that had been standing right where he had entered. Silver eyes quickly found her, hoping his sudden entrance had not been too much of an imposition!

She wasn’t familiar to him, which wasn’t particularly surprising even if it was a little disappointing. That disappointment dissipated quickly, however, as he turned back toward the entrance and took a couple shy steps forward. When he got the chance to really marvel at it, Mesec thought the variety that you could find in Helovia’s inhabitants was nothing short of wonderful - every single one was unique. You could think that you’ve seen just about every way a pair of wings could attach to a horse - be it in feathers, leather, delicate insect frames or even in quadruples - and suddenly there is a mare right there with a pair of small wings behind her ears.

And it didn’t look nearly as ridiculous as he might have thought just hearing someone describe it.

Realizing after a couple moments that he was approaching and staring but not actually speaking, Mesec stopped a couple places back still and managed to sputter out a sentence that was accompanied by a small smile. “I hope you don’t mind some company... the storm looks to be settling in for a while yet.” There were plenty of caverns he could explore should this haloed mare prefer to be alone, of course. Still, he found himself rather hoping for a bit of company. “My name’s Mesec.”

I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

There was a strong instinct to shake his wings, rid them of as much of the water as he could, but he would surely drench the mare sharing the cave with him and that didn’t really seem fair to her at all. She was sheltering from the rain! And here he went, thinking about bringing it in with him. Instead he settled for a part shake, a quick downwards shrug to eliminate some of the dampness and weight that had settled in with the water.

Besides, there was always the chance that she wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of the company of a stranger. In that case, he’d probably head right back out into the rain (where he’d get soaked again anyway) or deeper into the caves (where he’d be free to stretch those wings and give them a good shake).

For now, though, it would seem that his company was going to be accepted for the time being, and he was even graced with a small smile. Silver eyes watched her as she repeated his name and he caught the sound of her accent as it tested the syllables. If it had not been obvious from her exotic looks, her voice gave her away as someone that was not native to this area. Most weren’t, in the end, he supposed. Had she come from somewhere where everyone had small wings behind their ears? Where they were marked as tigers? Questions that were too impolite to ask right away or that he was too shy to bring up outloud bounced around his mind in the moment of silence between when she spoke his name and when her strange accent filled the cave once more. Her next words, however, silenced the questions and distracted him completely.

His horned head tilted to the side as she spoke of the Throat, seeming to have some familiarity with his name though he had never met her before. It seemed he would have to wait a little longer to learn her name too, but she had not lacked for a topic to bring up. “Is that so...” Rumours? Mesec couldn’t even feign surprise but there were other emotions vying for attention in him. He looked away from her then, shifting uncomfortably at the thought. He had been worried about such things since making the decision to make his home in the Gaucho’s herd. He feared the mistrust of his new herd mates and had pledged to work as hard as he could to show that he was trustworthy - that he was not his birth mother.

When details were not immediately forthcoming from the nameless stranger, his eyes found her again and he tried to sound as nonchalant as he could when he asked “And what have you heard?” It was easy to speculate, there really was only one thing Mesec thought would be worthy of gossip - as much as he disliked the idea of being a topic for others to discuss. Still, depending on what this striped mare had heard he might be able to judge the mood of the Throat towards him.

@[Maren]


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

Worry quickly faded into a smile when she explained what she “had heard” about Mesec - he even breathed out a quick chuckle at the mention of skin fungus. Whatever reason she had for saying these light-hearted things, whether it because there had not been any rumours or because the real rumours didn’t actually matter to her (or whatever other motive she had), he appreciated the effort to make a joke out of the situation. Visibly, he relaxed after hearing her light tone, watching as she began to walk. He stayed where he was, that smile still warmed up his dark face, eyes bright in the light of the mare’s halo. Shaking his head to diminish the chuckle, sending droplets of water against the cave wall, he responded in kind. “Ah yes, luckily the... cactus juice has cleared up the skin fungus.” The returning of the joke fumbled in his mouth but it hopefully the effort would still be recognizable.

He briefly wondered whether drinking cactus juice would be easy or whether you’d just end up with a muzzle full of spines and have to go find someone with a companion to help pluck them out, one-by-one.

But his mind was soon distracted by such silly thoughts as those when she asked if he would care to accompany “this old hag” on her journey down, deeper into the caves. Old and hag were not words that Mesec would have used to describe the mare before him. When your mother was ageless, it skewed your view on what was considered old or not. Nothing was old when you compared it to the Moon, or the Earth, or the Sun. He wasn’t really sure about Time itself, perhaps they all just started existing at the same time. And hag, well, perhaps this exotic mare was a witch but she certainly wasn’t an ugly one. “I would be happy to.” Exploring the caves again, especially when accompanied by the soft light of a halo and some stories, seemed like a great way to wait out the storm. Another glance outside and the constant rumble of the let him know that the rain would not be letting up anytime in the near future. He couldn’t say he minded the company he had happened across, however.

He moved then to join her as they faced the pathway that would lead downward and then step by step moved deeper into the caves until the mouth opens up and the red glow of the heart’s lava joins in with the gentle white glow coming from his company. The residual rain water continued to drip off of him, slower now, from the long tendrils of his mane and tail as they clung damply to his silver-lined skin. The impact onto the ground echoed just slightly whenever it hit stone, but presently he spoke - using a hushed tone. When he had last been here, the caves had been filled with the population of Helovia - you would be hard pressed to find somewhere that a voice was not at least echoing off of the cavern walls. Now, though, with the absence of so many bodies, he couldn’t bring himself even to speak at his normal volume - his voice would simply echo too much. “You know my name, might I know yours?” Mesec felt he should get to know those that he shared a herd with, at least by name, and felt a little embarrassed over the fact that she had seemed familiar with his name where he had no knowledge of hers.

sorry for the wait! <3 @[Maren]


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

Well there it was, so casual, she knew. It didn’t really matter, maybe, whether everyone knew or not. It wasn’t a secret, or if it was supposed to be that certainly failed a long time ago. Mesec tried not to bring it up if he could help it, telling others that you were a demigod just sounded so pretentious. It wasn’t usually how he started conversations, although it did come up in the Throat a couple times so far. It had felt important to not hide it from certain members of the Throat when his mother had caused so much grief for them. In any case, so far no one seemed to hold it over his head too much, and Maren - as she introduced herself - was still willing to share in his company despite his lineage. Perhaps one day he would learn to not worry so much about what others would think. No one else seemed to care so much about their parents.

Whether the gods would actually help out with a skin fungus, with the assistance of a ritual or not, was another matter. They were odd about their choices in when interfering was “against the rules” and when it was “for balance”.

They leave the topic of fungus and parents near the surface and move on to other things as they descend.

He listened, not finding any lack of curiosity or interest as they wandered deeper into the caves, as she explained a desire to know more about the land she had wandered. But his shadowy head shook earnestly at her apology. “You don’t have to apologize. There’s a lot to learn about this place - I may have been born here but I don’t even know everything... I wish I did. There’s just so much to know.” Helovia has had a rich history, he knew that much, and every year there were more stories being added that he had no clue about. There were births and deaths (too many of the latter for his tastes), kings and queens, crumbling herd lands, sicknesses, possessions… dull years were certainly not very common and he doubted that there was ever such a thing in all the time that had been spent here.

But there was something he did know and the memory struck him with inspiration. Silver eyes turned from their path to his company and he motioned towards one of the tunnels, changing his path to go down it. There was a room down there that he suspected Maren would like to see. In the glow of her halo his grin was bright and he fought the urge to tug on her mane as he would have with Ampere or Roskuld to encourage them along. “Come on, I want to show you something.” He moved off, pausing to check and make sure that she was following (the whole venture was pointless otherwise), before leading the way to the Wall of History.

The bubble of the fountain that reached them before they entered confirmed that he had turned into the right cavern. Above them as they entered, the lantern in the ceiling still burned, casting fire on the etched history of Helovia displayed in the cave wall. He still did not know exactly how this history had arrived here, perhaps the gods had created it as a record, but he was glad for its presence so he might share it with Maren today. “The four gods and how they brought life to this land.” Mesec explained with a small smile, gesturing to the pictures and stepping lightly toward them.

@[Maren]


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

He smiled back as she thanked him, not sure why she seemed to be happy that they had found each other or that she could talk to him - he wasn’t the best at conversations, though he had been giving it more effort lately. But he wasn’t about to snub her for it, even when all he did was try to comfort her as best as he could. “Well I’m glad you’re comfortable enough to talk to me, Maren.” He responded kindly. Otherwise their shared stay in these caves might very well be unpleasant! The torrential downpour that awaited outside might have been a better option of the silence had been hostile or uncomfortable. They were both, thankfully, saved from that outcome and could wander the caves together.

She followed as he led, the memory of the paths to take coming back although it had been what, a year or more since he had last been down here? Just after his return he had come here, searching for his family. Even then there had been others lingering, he had run into Sacre again!

Now, though, he doubted very much that they would find anyone else down here. They would be left at peace to explore.

Mesec felt so glad that the wall was a success with Maren - he watched with delight as she brushed off the dust, trying to take it all in. The firelight flickered around them and he stood off to the side - he knew what pictures were on the wall, he had explored them the last time he was down here. It was a treat, after all, just to hear the amazement in her voice as she took it all in, to watch as she explored every moment that was depicted.

It wasn’t until she asked him about some flames that he stopped looking at her and looked to the wall to see what she was talking about. “Yes, it was engulfed in flames at one point. A giant dragon, I think, or the Sun God.” Or both at different times? His knowledge on the Throat was pretty spotty, but he knew that there had been wars there before - knew that the large tree that still stood there was a remnant of the time before the wars and before the fire. He’d have to ask Ampere to tell him more about the history of his new herd.

He moved closer when she asked him if he knew the meanings, silver eyes searching the wall as he got a better look at it all. He picked out the stories that he knew, the obvious ones - the unmistakable form of his mother and the other gods as they meddled here and there. “Some of them... most of them, I think. I wish I knew more, like I said.” Most of his knowledge was from what had happened after the gods had showed up, but there was little about what had happened before. He did not believe that the gods had brought life to this place, just order.

But the one story he did know was how he knew about this place and when she asked, at least he could speak with some certainty on that subject. “We were trapped down here once, all of Helovia. One Orangemoon, a sickness infected the lands, great clouds of darkness came. Something the gods couldn’t - or wouldn’t - stop. I was on the beach when I first saw it - it was unlike any storm I had ever seen. Magical and wrong.” He frowned as he remembered the feeling. The infection of fear and the need to warn the Foothills as he fled before the darkness. Everyone else he knew had been there when it happened, this was the first time he had the chance to tell the story to someone new. “It was like… a physical manifestation of fear. It infected the lands and those that had lingered in them - turning them into wraiths. We were lucky, these caves had been discovered and Helovia’s population that was not infected took shelter here for a long time.” It had been interesting, the lot of them all sheltered down here. Smelly, certainly, but there was a decent amount of space so that they could spread out. “I think they were down here for a little over a season.” He was still unsure about the exact time when they had discovered that it was safe to return to the surface, or how they had found out. His own return to Helovia did not happen until the next Birdsong.

@[Maren]


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

Mesec could not help but marvel at the devotion with which Maren spoke about the Sun God, his head tilting as he regarded her with calm concern twice during their conversation now. First, when she had stumbled over blaming someone else and her lack of devotion for the reason why the Sun God set fire to the herd that he was in charge of protecting. As though one single horse with a lack of faith could inspire such wrath as to set fire to an entire herd. And second, when she praised Gaucho for returning the faith to Helovia and thus returning them to the surface. Now, Mesec had not been present inside the caves when they had all returned to the surface so maybe it was the faith that Helovians had in the Gods that fought away the fear and darkness.

Mesec had his doubts, but when didn’t he? Things were so rarely that simple.

He moved with her closer to the pool that cast dancing light on the ceiling and the walls and Mesec, listening to her words, brushed the hairs on his muzzle against the surface of the pool and watched the ripples. He wondered if the water still had healing properties, or if it was just against the wraiths that this water was helpful at all.

But he did not have much time for idle thoughts, the silver and black stallion was too interested in the topic at hand and too curious about Maren and how confident she sounded in her beliefs. He was jealous of that confidence.

He responded to that playful smile with a small grin of his own, grateful that she added the footnote that he was not to be pigeon holed. Still, he felt unsettled by her talk and uncomfortable with how unsettled he felt. It was not up to him to determine who Maren placed her faith with or how completely she was willing to give herself over to the Gods. “Why do you find it so easy to believe that what they do is right? That faith in the Gods will solve our problems?” The question came out quietly and cautiously because Mesec wasn’t really sure he should be speaking it, it was pretty rude of him to question her beliefs after all. But Maren was new to Helovia and their gods and he was incredibly curious about how she had fallen into this world so completely and so quickly.

Or was that why it seemed to be so easy for her? Because she had not been here long enough to realize the faults of the Gods, how they came and went as they pleased and left havoc in their place as the mortals and their children scrambled for peace. There was allegiance, yes, but it had been a long time since he had met someone so openly pious and it came as a bit of a shock. It was harder for him to see the Gods as Gods, as infallible beings that did what they did to punish or reward the Helovians that served them. He did not need to believe in them because he knew that they existed, knew that they had faults just as much as the rest of them. Just a great deal more arrogance and power as well.

DON'T LOOK AT THE DATE OR ME -hides in shame-
@[Maren]


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.

He could not find anything wrong with her answer though he quickly realized how he had made assumptions about her faith. He had gotten it wrong, had thought that she believed the gods, that her faith in the gods, would solve everything. But he was glad that he had asked his question so he could hear her explanation. He watched her with keen interest as she explain what she believed, how the gods did not exist just to protect Helovians but also the land and everything in it - and above all balance.

‘And whether keeping balance meets the good or the evil in our own judgmental minds it is not always as relevant as we think.’ Resonated within him, thinking about his mother and her actions. He just… he didn’t find it so easy to dismiss the possession of Gaucho and the the murders that had taken place. Why still felt like a relevant question and he had no optimism that it would ever change.

Mesec’s thoughts were pulling at strings that had long needed to be pulled at, topics that he had avoided and shied from all his life, and it was Maren’s voice that had started the pulling. His divine parentage had been a source of confusion for most of his life - always wanting that connection that others had with their mortal mothers, never receiving it. Well, for a time he had been welcomed into a secondary family and finally had a taste but even that had not lasted for long.

He stayed quiet as she answered, his mind racing through the near-silence of the cave, but it skidded to a stop when the question was returned. Although it was not easy to answer Maren’s question, he found her playful smile encouraging - her own honest answers inspiring him to do the same. His silver gaze returned to the wall, to the images of the gods, and there was a pause before he found the words. When they do come, they are hesitant at first but as he continued to pull at the strings the words came with more surety. “I… I’ve always found it hard. They’re not just gods, they’re family for me. My mother… her brothers are the parents of my friends, in addition to being the protectors of Helovia and the keepers of balance.” He looked to her then, paraphrasing her words with a smile that vanished in the next moment as he concentrated on finding the right words to continue. “I think… I’m putting mortal faces on them because it makes them easier to relate to, easier to believe that I’ve got some of their blood in me. And because of those mortal faces I see their flaws, focus on how illogical their methods for balance seem to me.” He wondered whether any of this was making any sense or if he just sounded like a petulant child. “I don’t feel as though I have the luxury of faith... that it is even an option for me.” He admitted finally, gently, the words too quiet to echo off the walls. Would he ever find peace with his heritage?

@[Maren] <3


I’m trying to find my direction home, ______________
A question of space, a matter of time, _______
I follow the stars until the first light.